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en-usPhys.org provides the latest news from European Geosciences UnionEast Asian human activities affect air quality in remote tropical forestsResearchers from the UK and Malaysia have detected a human fingerprint deep in the Borneo rainforest in Southeast Asia. Cold winds blowing from the north carry industrial pollutants from East Asia to the equator, with implications for air quality in the region. Once there, the pollutants can travel higher into the atmosphere and impact the ozone layer. The research is published today in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news347009160.html
EarthTue, 31 Mar 2015 08:26:12 EDTnews347009160Water's role in the rise and fall of the Roman EmpireSmart agricultural practices and an extensive grain-trade network enabled the Romans to thrive in the water-limited environment of the Mediterranean, a new study shows. But the stable food supply brought about by these measures promoted population growth and urbanisation, pushing the Empire closer to the limits of its food resources. The research, by an international team of hydrologists and Roman historians, is published today in Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news337511267.html
EarthThu, 11 Dec 2014 09:07:53 EDTnews337511267From 'Finding Nemo' to minerals—what riches lie in the deep sea?As fishing and the harvesting of metals, gas and oil have expanded deeper and deeper into the ocean, scientists are drawing attention to the services provided by the deep sea, the world's largest environment. "This is the time to discuss deep-sea stewardship before exploitation is too much farther underway," says lead-author Andrew Thurber. In a review published today in Biogeosciences, a journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU), Thurber and colleagues summarise what this habitat provides to humans, and emphasise the need to protect it.http://phys.org/news325849793.html
EarthTue, 29 Jul 2014 10:50:09 EDTnews325849793Has Antarctic sea ice expansion been overestimated?New research suggests that Antarctic sea ice may not be expanding as fast as previously thought. A team of scientists say much of the increase measured for Southern Hemisphere sea ice could be due to a processing error in the satellite data. The findings are published today in The Cryosphere, a journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news325240223.html
EarthTue, 22 Jul 2014 09:30:33 EDTnews325240223Famous paintings help study the Earth's past atmosphereA team of Greek and German researchers has shown that the colours of sunsets painted by famous artists can be used to estimate pollution levels in the Earth's past atmosphere. In particular, the paintings reveal that ash and gas released during major volcanic eruptions scatter the different colours of sunlight, making sunsets appear more red. The results are published today in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news314946987.html
EarthTue, 25 Mar 2014 06:17:12 EDTnews314946987Greenland's fastest glacier reaches record speedsJakobshavn Isbræ (Jakobshavn Glacier) is moving ice from the Greenland ice sheet into the ocean at a speed that appears to be the fastest ever recorded. Researchers from the University of Washington and the German Space Agency (DLR) measured the dramatic speeds of the fast-flowing glacier in 2012 and 2013. The results are published today in The Cryosphere, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news310638947.html
EarthMon, 03 Feb 2014 10:00:01 EDTnews310638947Ancient forests stabilized Earth's CO2 and climateUK researchers have identified a biological mechanism that could explain how the Earth's atmospheric carbon dioxide and climate were stabilised over the past 24 million years. When CO2 levels became too low for plants to grow properly, forests appear to have kept the climate in check by slowing down the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The results are now published in Biogeosciences, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news309701214.html
EarthThu, 23 Jan 2014 12:07:08 EDTnews309701214Europe to suffer from more severe and persistent droughtsAs Europe is battered by storms, new research reminds us of the other side of the coin. By the end of this century, droughts in Europe are expected to be more frequent and intense due to climate change and increased water use. These results, by researchers from the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) and the University of Kassel in Germany, are published today in Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news308481046.html
EarthThu, 09 Jan 2014 09:12:01 EDTnews308481046Geoengineering approaches to reduce climate change unlikely to succeed, study saysReducing the amount of sunlight reaching the planet's surface by geoengineering may not undo climate change after all. Two German researchers used a simple energy balance analysis to explain how the Earth's water cycle responds differently to heating by sunlight than it does to warming due to a stronger atmospheric greenhouse effect. Further, they show that this difference implies that reflecting sunlight to reduce temperatures may have unwanted effects on the Earth's rainfall patterns. The results are now published in Earth System Dynamics, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news305458486.html
EarthThu, 05 Dec 2013 09:34:58 EDTnews305458486Using moving cars to measure rainfallDrivers on a rainy day regulate the speed of their windshield wipers according to rain intensity: faster in heavy rain and slower in light rain. This simple observation has inspired researchers from the University of Hanover in Germany to come up with 'RainCars', an initiative that aims to use GPS-equipped moving cars as devices to measure rainfall. The most recent results of the project are now published in Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news304850269.html
EarthThu, 28 Nov 2013 08:37:58 EDTnews304850269How pigeons may smell their way homeHoming pigeons, like other birds, are extraordinary navigators, but how they manage to find their way back to their lofts is still debated. To navigate, birds require a 'map' (to tell them home is south, for example) and a 'compass' (to tell them where south is), with the sun and the Earth's magnetic field being the preferred compass systems. A new paper provides evidence that the information pigeons use as a map is in fact available in the atmosphere: odours and winds allow them to find their way home. The results are now published in Biogeosciences, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news302872184.html
BiologyTue, 05 Nov 2013 11:09:54 EDTnews302872184The oldest ice core: Finding a 1.5 million-year record of Earth's climate(Phys.org) —How far into the past can ice-core records go? Scientists have now identified regions in Antarctica they say could store information about Earth's climate and greenhouse gases extending as far back as 1.5 million years, almost twice as old as the oldest ice core drilled to date. The results are published today in Climate of the Past, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news302863517.html
EarthTue, 05 Nov 2013 08:45:28 EDTnews302863517Terrestrial ecosystems at risk of major shifts as temperatures increaseOver 80 percent of the world's ice-free land is at risk of profound ecosystem transformation by 2100, a new study reveals. "Essentially, we would be leaving the world as we know it," says Sebastian Ostberg of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Germany. Ostberg and collaborators studied the critical impacts of climate change on landscapes and have now published their results in Earth System Dynamics, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news300439386.html
EarthTue, 08 Oct 2013 08:23:13 EDTnews300439386Tiny plankton could have big impact on climateAs the climate changes and oceans' acidity increases, tiny plankton seem set to succeed. An international team of marine scientists has found that the smallest plankton groups thrive under elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) levels. This could cause an imbalance in the food web as well as decrease ocean CO2 uptake, an important regulator of global climate. The results of the study, conducted off the coast of Svalbard, Norway, in 2010, are now compiled in a special issue published in Biogeosciences, a journal of the European Geosciences Union.http://phys.org/news298269687.html
EarthFri, 13 Sep 2013 05:42:25 EDTnews298269687Using digital SLRs to measure the height of Northern LightsScientific research doesn't often start from outreach projects. Yet, Ryuho Kataoka from the National Institute of Polar Research in Tokyo, Japan, came up with an idea for a new method to measure the height of aurora borealis after working on a 3D movie for a planetarium. Kataoka and collaborators used two digital single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras set 8 km apart to capture 3D images of Northern Lights and determine the altitude where electrons in the atmosphere emit the light that produces aurora. The results are published today in Annales Geophysicae, a journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).http://phys.org/news297678579.html
Astronomy & SpaceFri, 06 Sep 2013 09:29:50 EDTnews297678579